Constructing piers.



No. 831,481. PATBNTED SEPT. 18, 1906. I

P. SHUMAN.

CONSTRUOTING PIERS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.21,1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

THE NORRIS PETERS-LO wnsmucrorv, l7 c1 No. 831,481. PATENTED SEPT. 18, 1906. F. SHUMAN. GONSTRUGTING PIERS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.21,1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 rm: mmms PETERS ca, WASHINGTON n. c.

PATENTED SEPT. 18, 1906.

F. SHUMAN.

GONSTRUGTING PIERS. APPLICATION FILED APR.21.1904.

3' SHEETS-SHEET 3.

7 4 7/ l" f m 7 I I A Jaye/0 07 fl me/Z Quanta/Z lllllm a Jig UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CONSTRUCTING PIERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 18, 1906.

Application filed April 21, 1904- Serial No. 204,238.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANK SHUMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Constructing Piers, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to so construct a pier for bridges or other structures that the same can be built upon bed-rock or other stable foundation at any desired depth without the necessity of using a caisson, airlock, or pressure-chamber, and, if desired, without the necessity of sending any work men below the water-level, the method of construction, moreover, being much cheaper and more expeditious than methods now in use and the resulting pier being of exceptional strength.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional plan view of a pier-casing constructed in accordance with my invention before the concrete or other filling has been introduced. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same on a smaller scale. Figs. 3 and 4 are views similar to Figs. 1 and 2, but illustrating the completed pier. Figs. 5 and 6 are perspective views illustrating the piles used in constructing the pier-casing. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of one of the bracerods, and Fig. 8 is a view illustrating a special form of pile.

In Fig. 1 of the drawings, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 represent different forms of metal tubes which may be employed in the construction of a pier in accordance with my invention, the tubes 1 and 3 being simple rectangular structures, the tubes 2 being rectangular in cross-section, but having projecting edge flanges on opposite sides, the tubes 4 being of triangular cross-section and having projecting edge flanges on two of their sides, and the tubes 5 being of rectangular cross-section and having projecting edge flanges on two of the sides which are at a right angle to each other. These metallic tubes may be of any desired length, depending upon the depth of the bedrock or other permanent foundation beneath the water level, and they are driven or sunk side by side through the mud or other soil overlying the bed-rock or foundation either by means of an ordinary pile-driver or by means of a water-jet or in any other available manner, the fact that the tubes are open at the bottom facilitating such driving or sinking, although in carrying out my invention piles closed at the bottom may be used in place of such tubes, if desired. The pier is started by first driving or sinking the tube 1 at the upstream-point of the desired pier, and after the same has been driven tubes 2 and 3 are driven or sunk in alternation on each side of the same and ondiverging lines until the necessary width for the finished pier has been approached, whereupon the triangular tubes 4 are driven preparatory to the formation of the sides of the pier-inclosure by driving in alternation tubes 3 and 2, and when the desired length of the pier-inclosure has been attained the said inclosure is completed by filling up the end of the same by driving tubes 3 and 2 in alternation, as shownf in Fig. 1. By means of the projecting sides or edge flanges 7 of the various tubes they are closely interlocked. and held in proper alinement one with another during the driving operation and after the inclosure has been completed. If the pier is to be of simple rectangular cross-section, the special forms of tube or pile shown at 1 and 4 will not be required. After each tube has been driven or sunk to the proper foundation the soil or other material within the tube may be removed by jetting or in any other available manner, and each tube may then be filled from the foundation to the top with concrete, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, or, if desired, the soil or other material through which the tube is sunk or driven to foundation may be permitted to remain in the tube, and the concrete may be filled in on top of the same, the water in either case being displaced upwardly as the level of concrete rises in the tube. The soil or other material within the pier-casing thus formed may now be removed down to bed-rock or other foundation by a suitable suction or other dredge without removing the water, so that said casing is not subjected to any external pressure tending to collapse the same, and after such material has been thus removed the various portions of the pier-casingmay be tied together by suitable transverse, longitudinal, and diagonal rods 6, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, these rods being readily introduced into place and secured to the desired tubes of the pier-casing without any underwater-work by providing said tubes on their inner sides with grooved guides 8 for the reception of T-heads at the opposite ends of the tie-rods, so that said tie-rods can be dropped into proper position from the top of the casing structure, suitable filling-blocksbeing introduced in order to properly separate vertically the successively-introduced sets of tie-rods, or the T-heads of the latter being of a proper length for that purpose. The interior of the pier-casing is now filled with concrete suitably rammed, the water being gradually displaced as the concrete accumulatesand stones and rubble-work being, if desired, thrown in with the concrete and such bolts or other connections being embedded in the latter as may be necessary to securely fasten the cap or superstructure to the pier. The pier thus constructed is practically a very strongly reinforced concrete monolithextending down to the bed-rock or other foundation and securely anchored thereto. Binding cavities may be formed in the bed-rock by blasting or in any other manner adapted to the purpose, if such cavities are not originally presented. by the bed-rock and are considered necessary in order to firmly unite the pier therewith. The pier can be constructed without the use of-any temporary caisson or any system of air locking or pressure chambers and under perfectly normal conditions and without any risk, since it is not necessary for the workmen to go below the surface of the water at any time.

The economy of the construction will be evident when it is borne in mind that all of the tubes which constitute the pier-casing can be easily and quickly constructed at any bridge-works and that tubes of any desired length can be easily driven by any of the larger barge pile-driving machines, as the lower edges of the tubes offer very little resistance to such driving of the same. The strength of a pier constructed in this manner and provided with an outer reinforced casing securely tied to the central concrete body of the pier must, as will be evident, be much greater than that of any masonry pier, particularly when used as an ice-breaker. In the latter case the nose or point of the pier may be armored with timber or other desirable material.

Many of the advantages of my invention will be obtained if, after constructing the pier-casing in the manner described, the water is pumped out of the same and the material down to bed-rock or other foundation then removed in the same manner as now adopted in connection with piers of limited depth, such as can be constructed within an ordinary sheet-pile coffer-dam. it becomes necessary to make the pier-casing water-tight, and for this pur ose the spaces between the tubes may be filled with concrete, as shown at 11, these spaces as the piles are being driven being kept free from mud or soil by reason of the fact that each pile has each of its sides beveled at the bottom, as shown at 12, so that the downwardlyprojecting beveled flange of that side of the In this case.

pile which adjoins the previously-driven pile is as each pile is driven caused to bear against said previously-driven pile, thus preventing the entrance of mud or soil into the space between the two piles. The casing having been rendered watertight, the sides of the casing are braced by means of struts introduced in the same manner as the tie-bars 6 or by means of timber struts or braces, and the water is then pumped out and the material excavated down to the bed-rock or other foundation, the interior of the casing being then filled with concrete or with masonrywork, as desired. In this case the struts or braces may be introduced as the water is being pumped out or the soil or other material is being removed down to bed-rock, and brackets or short guides may be used for connecting said struts or braces to the tubes or hollow piles of the casing instead of the long guides shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The struts or braces are removed as the concrete is filled in, or in the case of metallic struts or braces they may, if desired, be permitted to remain so as to serve as a means of tying the casing to the concrete body of the pier. Even when this method is adopted all of the work can be done in the open air and without risk attending the use of caissons, air-locks, and pressure-chambers. The flanges 7 can, if desired, be bent so as to accommodate themselves to tubes which are not in direct alinement one with another, as shown in Fig. 8. In some cases it may not be necessary to fill with concrete the tubes of which the piercasing is composed, although in most cases 1 such filling of the tubes will be desirable in order to impart to said casing the desired strength and rigidity, and, if desired, any suitable form of metallic reinforce may be 1 embedded in the concrete masses with which the tubes are filled.

In the case of long piers or wharf structures extending from the solid ground or from a bulkhead out into the water it may not be necessary to close the inner end of the pier-casing in the manner described, the opposite sides of the pier-casing abutting against the bulkhead or against the solid ground, forming the bank or shore from which the pier projects. Nor is it necessary in every case to use metallic tubes or hollow piles in carrying out my invention, as in some cases said tubes or hollow piles may be composed of planks or timbers properly secured together.

Although I prefer in carrying out my invention to fill with concrete or other material the tubes or hollow piles of which the pier-casing is composed before excavating the material within the casing, such filling of the tubes or hollow piles of the casing may, if desired, be deferred until such excavation has been completed, and the tubes or hollow piles may be filled with concrete at the same IOC dams which are intended to be removed after.

the pier has been constructed within the same, tubes open at the lower end being much superior to piles for such purpose, because if started straight they are free from that liability to deviation from a straight course, which frequently causes trouble in building coffer-dams from ordinary sheet- 5 P iling.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The mode herein described of constructing a pier, said mode consisting in first driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a piercasing, removing down to foundation the material within said casing, then filling the space within the casing with concrete, masonry, or other material of which the pier is to be composed, and securing the same to the casing so that the latter remains as a sheathing or protection for the pier. 2. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said. mode consisting in first forming a pier-casing by driving or sinking down to a foundation a succession of tubes or hollow piles, thereby inclosing a space open above to the air, and then building the pier within the open-working thus produced.

3. The mode hereindescribed of constructing piers, said mode consisting in first forming a pier-casing by driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles, filling the same with concrete or other material, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, filling the space within the casing with concrete, masonry, or other material of which the pier is to be composed, and securing said. material to the tubes or piles constituting the casing, whereby the latter constitutes an external sheathing or protection for the pier.

4. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in first driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, interlocking said tubes or piles one with another as they are being sunk or driven, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, then filling the space within the casing with concrete or masonry of which the pier is to be composed, and securing the same to the tubes or hollow piles so that the latter constitute an external sheathing or protection for the pier.

5. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in first driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, interlocking said tubes or piles one with another as they are being driven, filling the tubes or'hollow piles with concrete or other material, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, and then filling the space with concrete, masonry, or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

. 6. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in first driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, interlocking said tubes or piles one with another as they are being sunk or driven, filling the tubes or hollow piles with concrete or other mate rial, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, then filling said space with concrete, masonry, or other material of which the pile is to be composed, and securing said material to the tubes or hollow piles so that the latter will serve as an external sheathing or protection for the pier.

7. The mode herein described of con structing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of piles to form a casing for the pier-space, said piles having spaces between them, displacing the soil from said spaces by the act .of driving or sinking the piles, and then building the pier within the open-working thus produced.

8. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession: of piles to form a casing for the pier-space, said piles having spaces between them, displacing the soil from said spaces by the act of driving the piles, then filling the spaces between the piles with concrete or other packing material, and then building the pier within the open-working thus produced.

9. The mode herein described. of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier-space, said piles having spaces between them, displacing the soil from said spaces by the act of driving the piles, then filling the tubes or hollow piles with concrete, and then building the pier within the open-working thus produced.

10. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles so as to form a casing for the pier-space, said piles having spaces between them, displacing the soil from said spaces by the act of driving the piles, then filling with concrete the hollow piles and the spaces between them, and then building the pier within the open-working thus produced.

11. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of open-bottomed tubes to form a casing for the pier, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, and then filling the space with concrete, masonry, or other material of which the casing, whereby the tubes serve as an external sheathing or protection for the pier.

13. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, bracing said tubes or piles by means of tie-rods or struts before, during, or after the removal of the material from within the casing, and then introducing into the space within said casing the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

14. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, then removing down to foundation the material within said casing, without removing the water, and then introducing the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

15. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, filling said tubes or hollow piles with concrete or other material, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, without removing the Water, and then filling the space within f posed. ing said material to the tubes which compose the casing with the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

16. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in drivmg or smklng a succession of tubes to form a casing for the pier, removing the material from within said tubes, filling the same with concrete or other material, removing down to foundation the material within the casing,

without removing the water, and filling the space within the casing with the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be com- 17. The mode herein described of con- 7 structing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow piles to form a casing for the pier, removing down to foundation the material within said casing without removing the water, tying together the tubes or hollow piles of which the sides of the casing are composed, and then filling the space within the casing with the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

18. The mode herein described of constructing piers, said mode consisting in driving or sinking a succession of tubes or hollow I plles to form a caslng for the pier, filling said tubes with concrete or other material, removing down to foundation the material within the casing, without removing the water, tying together the tubes or piles constituting the opposite sides of the casing, and introducing into the space within the casing the concrete or other material of which the pier is to be composed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK SHUMAN.

Witnesses:

WALTER CHIsM, Jos. H. KLEIN. 

